thin ring with amethyst (2 new items)
Thin cellular ring in Continuum sterling silver with marquise-cut amethyst gemstone.
Thin cellular ring in Continuum sterling silver with marquise-cut amethyst gemstone.
We work with clients to create engagement rings and other custom jewelry pieces which fuse art, science and technology. Each piece starts from a natural inspiration and is materialized in metal using a mixture of computation, 3D-printing and traditional metalsmithing. The Florescence Engagement Ring is now available in our shop. If you are interested in commissioning us to create a custom piece of jewelry, contact us at orders@n-e-r-v-o-u-s.com to start the conversation.
The seventh version of our Kinematics Dress was created in October 2015 for Dutch Design Week. It was exhibited in the window at De Bijenkorf Eindhoven by Shapeways and later appeared in WIRED UK. It is a size 2 gown composed of 2324 interlocking panels that were 3D-printed as a single piece.
The sixth version of our Kinematics Dress was 3D-printed in July 2015. It is composed of 2,645 interlocking panels that were 3D-printed as a single computationally folded piece.
dress details
2645 interlocking panels
size 4
red
The fifth version of our Kinematics Dress was created in June 2015. It is a size 8 gown composed of 2854 interlocking panels that were 3D-printed as a single piece.
3D printed ABS, acrylic, MDF, electronics, LEDs Branching forms emerge as the zoetrope spins illustrating dendritic solidification, a process where crystals grow in a supercooled environment. 18.25 x 18.25 inches
selectively laser sintered nylon, MDF, electronics, LEDs This zoetrope illustrates two scales of reaction-diffusion affecting the growth of a sphere. Rather than there being multiple objects, one for each frame, this zoetrope is a seamless sculpture representing the progression of the simulation through time much like a slitscanned photograph moves through time and space. 18 x 18 x 21 inches
full color 3D printed plaster, MDF, acrylic, electronics, LEDs The differential growth of a fan-shaped surface is animated as the zoetrope spins. The distance from the growing edge is illustrated by a color gradient from yellow to blue. 18.5 x 18.5 inches
nylon 3D printed by Selective Laser Sintering, MDF, electronics, LEDs A tree-like form with two leaves grows as the disc spins. The zoetrope illustrates Nervous System’s leaf venation inspired algorithm, hyphae, as it grows across 3D surfaces. 30.5 x 30.5 x 21 inches
Our solo exhibition "Growing Objects" explored natural growth processes through simulation and 3D printed sculpture. It was hosted by the Simons Center for Geometry and Physics in Stonybrook, NY in August and September of 2014. Our work at Nervous System explores processes which cause structure and pattern to emerge in nature. We adapt the logic of these processes into computational tools; translating scientific theories and models of pattern formation into algorithms for design. The exhibit focused on four such computational systems: reaction (2010), xylem / hyphae (2011), laplacian (2011), and florescence (2014). These algorithmic investigations of nature were each documented by digitally fabricated sculptures and a series of posters explaining the math, science and natural inspiration behind them. Each growth process was also illustrated through 3D-printed zoetropes. When in motion, these kinetic sculptures animate the formation of complex forms and when still they allow the viewer to examine each steps of the growth process. While inspired by natural systems, these sculptures do not directly mimic specific phenomena but are instead open-ended explorations of the mathematics and logic behind them. The generated forms propose a new way of thinking about how we can design or "grow" our environment.
Floraform is a computational simulation of differential growth on a thin surface. Our system includes a physics simulation of a thin shell or elastic surface with a curved rest configuration, and a model of growth. The surface is modelled as a triangle mesh represented as a half-edge mesh structure. It evolves through time and on each timestep, forces are computed on each vertex of the mesh, new positions are integrated for each vertex, and growth rates expand each edge of the mesh. Many of the techniques used are based on discrete differential geometry. The system can be broken down into several components.
Floraform is a computational simulation of differential growth on a thin surface. Our system includes a physics simulation of a thin shell or elastic surface with a curved rest configuration, and a model of growth. The surface is modelled as a triangle mesh represented as a half-edge mesh structure. It evolves through time and on each timestep, forces are computed on each vertex of the mesh, new positions are integrated for each vertex, and growth rates expand each edge of the mesh. Many of the techniques used are based on discrete differential geometry. The system can be broken down into several components.
How does an organism go from a single cell to a complex differentiated structure? If a single cell were to divide and grow uniformly, it would result in a wrinkled blob. However, through carefully coordinated subdivision and differentiation, biological systems produce structures with specific, reproducible forms and functions. Growth isn’t uniform but instead differential. To put it simply, some areas grow more than others, and this leads to the formation of macroscopic shape. These shapes result from the interplay between the underlying cellular growth processes and the mechanics of the materials themselves. Plant tropisms are an example of this process that you can observe directly. Tropisms are directional responses to directional stimuli. A plant can bend towards light by elongating cells on its stem that are in shadow (phototropism). Or vines can strangle another plant by responding to touch and wrapping around them (thigmotropism). We started developing Floraform after coming across two papers by L. Mahadevan: “The shape of the long leaf” (2010) and “Growth, geometry and mechanics of the blooming lily” (2011). Looking at the shapes of rippled leaves and blooming flowers, Mahadevan proposed that their ruffled forms could be described by a surface growing differentially from its edge. We found this interesting because complex ruffles develop from a very simple procedure: grow more at the edge. This is in contrast to other differential growth models where curvature is specified locally, by growing on one side more than another, like the bending stem example we gave above. At the same time, we became enamored with a flower called Cockscomb, a mutant cultivar of Celosia that produces dense, convoluted blooms instead of its normal branching, tree-like blossoms. It exhibits this amazing ruffled shape that is unlike any flower we’d ever seen (people often refer to it as brain flower). We hypothesized that you could simulate the growth of Cockscomb with this type of preferential growth toward the edge. The Celosia flower suggested that there was a space of form between the normal and the mutant, between branching and ruffling. We wanted to explore that space. With our minds now contemplating this growth model, we began to see rippled forms in diverse ecosystems and kingdoms of life: Sparassis fungi, lettuce sea slugs, lace bryozoans, kale and lettuce leaves, plumose anemone, iris flowers, jellyfish arms. So we started to build a digital environment where we could investigate these ideas.